‘Racist’ Facebook comments about packed Durban beach spark anger

Citizen reporter

Ben Sasonof's Facebook profile picture. Picture: Facebook

The ANC Youth League in eThekwini will caucus on the matter to determine whether they would lay charges.

A Sandton resident’s Facebook comments on a photograph of a packed Durban beach has landed him in hot water, with the ANC Youth League in eThekwini reportedly saying they were considering opening a case of crimen injura against the man’s seemingly racist comments.

News24 reported that in a telephonic interview, Sasonof said, “This is all nonsense,” and that “at no point was I racist”. He reportedly did admit to becoming aggressive wen he was “personally attacked and provoked”.

The ANC Youth League in eThekwini is not taking the incident lightly, with secretary Thinta Cibane reportedly saying that it was a shame how Sasonof had referred to young people and that he had “denigrated” an elder, Zuma.

Cibane further stated that it was “the type of thing” that the youth league in the province would lay charges over and that they would caucus on the matter to determine whether they would lay charges.

At the start of the year, Penny Sparrow made headlines for comparing black people to monkeys. In June‚ she was ordered by the equality court to pay R150 000 within 60 days to the Oliver and Adelaide Tambo Foundation after being found guilty of hate speech.

By Sunday evening, the hashtag, #BenSasonof, was circulating on Twitter.